Where I'd throw a Hunter Valley wedding if I wanted a long lunch instead of a sit down reception

Not everyone wants a wedding that runs like a corporate AGM with a first dance bolted on. If you would rather feed people well, pour good wine and let the afternoon stretch out, the Hunter Valley has three venues built for exactly that.

Margan Wines and Restaurant in Broke Fordwich is the obvious starting point. It is a working vineyard estate with a rammed earth restaurant, barrel room and courtyard, and the whole approach is built around seasonal, farm to table dining pulled from their own kitchen garden and orchard. Say your vows on the lawn overlooking the vines, then walk guests straight into a long, shared table lunch instead of herding them into a ballroom. It is relaxed by design, not by accident.

Briar Ridge Vineyard in Mount View works on a similar principle. The gardens have two terraces and plenty of quiet corners for photos, but the drawcard is the food, catered by Bistro Molines, one of the Hunter's most respected kitchens. A day event here feels like a proper long lunch among the vines rather than a formal dinner service, which suits couples who want the afternoon to breathe.

Then there is Hungerford Hill in Pokolbin, home to Muse Restaurant. Muse already runs as one of the region's best regional restaurants, so a wedding here plugs straight into a kitchen that knows exactly how to pace a long, generous meal. It is a genuinely different feel to a marquee reception, more dinner party with 80 of your closest people than event with a run sheet.

We work in wedding advertising across the Hunter Valley, Sydney and Melbourne, and the long lunch question comes up constantly. Couples want their day to feel like them, not like a template pulled from a venue brochure, and the Hunter's cellar door culture makes that a lot easier to pull off than a hotel ballroom ever will.

If a sit down reception sounds like more performance than party, start with these three. Ring them early though, because good vineyard lunch dates in the Hunter get locked in a year or more out.

Sugar Honey is the social media and advertising agency behind What's The Buzz, and wedding advertising across the Hunter Valley, Sydney and Melbourne is one of the things we do best. Get in touch at info@sugarhoney.com.au.